Middle school environmentalists take a path to Discovery

Courtesy of Susan J. Dee/H.E. McCracken Middle SchoolH.E. McCracken Middle School student Ryan Morris finds himself in possession of a snake during his environmental studies class field trip for Discovery Days at Waddell Mariculture Center.

Discovery Days at Waddell Mariculture Center provided five local schools with the chance to discover the animals above and below the waters of the salt marsh.

The Port Royal Sound Foundation, Department of Natural Resources, master naturalists and Waddell Mariculture Center worked together to bring the program to Beaufort County students.

Included in the expedition were McCracken students who boarded the Discovery vessel, an education boat operated by DNR, at Trask Landing and explored the waters of the Colleton River.

A trawl net was released overboard and pulled in many treasures from the waters below. The organisms were placed in small tanks on board for the students to observe. DNR representatives discussed facts and interesting anecdotes about the marsh creatures. Stingrays, mantis shrimp, spade fish, horseshoe crabs, squid, flounder and burrfish were all part of the catch. The second half of the day was spent on the grounds of Waddell Mariculture Center. LowCountry Institute and master naturalists ran stations to further explore marsh animals. Touch tanks held shrimp, snails and crabs.

Naturalist Tony Mills awed the students with amphibians and reptiles - especially the snakes. Waddell director Al Stokes gave the students a tour of the center and emphasized the importance of sea farming to sustain the seafood populations of local waters.

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